Description

Chaos Control (カオスコントロール,Kaosu Kontorōru?) is a recurring technique in the Sonic the Hedgehog series. It is a Chaos Power that allows the user to warp time and space with the mystical Chaos Emeralds. While first introduced as a way to teleport over large distances, Chaos Control has since been evolved into a overall term for any supernatural reality manipulation conducted through the Chaos Emeralds, allowing incredible feats such as traveling through time and between dimensions, altering the fabric of reality, or freezing time.

Contents

Description

Shadow invoking Chaos Control.

Chaos Control is an ability that allows the user to manipulate or warp the fabric of space and time using a Chaos Emerald's chaos energy,[1][2][3][4][5][6] and its effects can be molded into affecting reality in a multitude of manners. The power of Chaos Control is enhanced with each Chaos Emerald added to its usage, until reaching full power with all seven,[7] meaning that the more Chaos Emeralds that are used in the process, the greater is the extent that the user can warp space and time. Furthermore, because the power of the Chaos Emeralds can be harnessed without a physical connection to a Chaos Emerald, users only need to be within an unknown proximity to one to use Chaos Control.[8]

Chaos Control requires at least one Chaos Emerald nearby to draw power from,[1][2][3][4][5][6][9] and without one, Chaos Control is impossible,[10] with the exception of fake Emeralds with the same wavelength and properties as a real Chaos Emerald. A report for the Biolizard also stated that a specific organ was used by the creature to begin the process of Chaos Control.[11]

Space Manipulation

The Space Colony ARK being teleported by Chaos Control.

Chaos Control is foremost associated with its ability to manipulate space, which is usually used to create warps that teleport the user instantaneously from one place to another.[12] The user can also bring others with them when warping, or warp objects to other locations without going with them by firing Chaos Control as an energy ball, though varying amounts of energy is required depending on the extent of the warp. With all seven Chaos Emeralds, the user can perform Chaos Control to its full extent, which can teleport objects as large as the Space Colony ARK and the Black Comet from the earth's surface and into space. With just a couple of Chaos Emeralds, Chaos Control can even be used for interdimensional travel: Shadow could warp back himself and Metal Sonic to earth from the Chaotic Inferno Zone with one Emerald, Blaze could sent herself to another dimension with two, and Black Doom could warp others into cyberspace.

As demonstrated by Dr. Eggman in Sonic Advance 3, Chaos Control's space-manipulating properties can also be used to reshape reality itself, which he demonstrated by splitting the Earth into seven regions. Together with the time-manipulating properties of Chaos Control, the user can also create rifts in space and time, which can banish those who passes into them to the void. In battle, Chaos Control can also be used to distort space around limbs to increase the damage of their blows.

Time Manipulation

The second most common use of Chaos Control is its ability to manipulate time, though not to the same extent as the space-manipulation. It is most frequently used to either slow down time or stop it entirely, which in turn keeps other suspended without any means of breaking free. The users themselves are unaffected however.

Sonic and Silver creating a Time-Space Rift.

With at least two users and two Chaos Emeralds, Chaos Control also allows the users to travel through time itself, though some space manipulation is involved. In Sonic the Hedgehog (2006), it is demonstrated that if two people, each with a Chaos Emerald, attempt to activate Chaos Control independently of one another, but also in very close proximity, the two attempts cancel each other out and create a rip in the fabric of space-time. These Time-Space Rifts gives anyone who enters a brief degree of choice in quickly traveling backwards or forwards in time and to another location as well.

Sonic Adventure 2

Shadow's first known display of Chaos Control.

The first use of Chaos Control was introduced in Sonic Adventure 2 and Sonic Adventure 2: Battle. It was first used by Shadow to evade Sonic the Hedgehog when they first met and then to flee from the scene before G.U.N. arrived. When Prison Island was about to blow up, Shadow saved Rouge from being caught in the blast by using Chaos Control to teleport them both to safety. Sonic would later use Chaos Control almost subconsciously with a fake Chaos Emerald to teleport back to the Space Colony ARK when he was to be blown up in a capsule ejected from the ARK. When Sonic and Shadow later had their battle at Final Rush, the two would both use Chaos Control to gain up on one another. Then, when Sonic and Knuckles stopped the ARK's collision course with earth, the Biolizard used its own Chaos Control to teleport outside the ARK and merged with it, thus becoming Finalhazard, keep the ARK on course.[13] After defeating the Finalhazard, Super Sonic and Super Shadow used a combined Chaos Control that sent the ARK back into orbit.

Shadow executing Chaos Control in gameplay.

Chaos Control also appears as Shadow's special attack in the games' two-player mode, where it is the equivalent of Sonic's Time Stop. When used, the colors on the opposing player's screen turn negative and a counter appears. This effect leaves the opponent completely immobilized, making it an ideal way for the user to gain the upper hand in a race. Chaos Control lasts for ten to twenty seconds, which is indicated by the counter, although the opposing player can reduce the remaining amount of time by rapidly pressing buttons. To use Chaos Control, the player must press // after collecting sixty Rings. To use it again, the player has to collect another sixty Rings. If Shadow has fallen into a bottomless pit with no rings, he will be given a free Chaos Control that lasts five seconds or more. If he is in his special suit, he will be able to use Chaos Control for every twenty Rings, but only for five seconds or more.

Sonic Heroes

In Sonic Heroes, Chaos Control is part of Team Dark's Team Blast, Chaos Inferno. The move destroys every enemy in the direct vicinity, stops all objects in place and the clock for 10 seconds. The player can end this effect by pressing the Team Blast button (White Button//). In the final battle against Metal Overlord, Metal Overlord may use Chaos Control (due to having copied Sonic and Shadow's data) which lets him freeze time to prevent Team Super Sonic from moving or attacking and also stops the clock for nineteen seconds, but their rings still drain away while Chaos Control is in effect.[14]

Sonic Battle

In Sonic Battle, almost all of Shadow's attacks involve Chaos Control in some form or another.

Sonic Advance 3

Chaos Control is a plot device in Sonic Advance 3. In the game, Dr. Eggman used the Chaos Emeralds to induce a Chaos Control so powerful that it separated and reshaped the world into several different regions.[15]

Shadow the Hedgehog

In Shadow the Hedgehog, the use of Chaos Control plays a very prominent role in the story. The game introduced Black Doom, an alien warlord who could also perform Chaos Control, just like Shadow. Over the course of the game. Black Doom would use Chaos Control to teleport Shadow to areas where he needed him, either to assist his army or to retrieve the Chaos Emeralds.

Shadow himself would also use of Chaos Control over the course of his adventure, as seen during the intro sequence where he used it to attack the Black Arms or when he used Chaos Control to enter various places, such as Dr. Eggman's bases or the ruins of Prison Island.

In the Last Story, Black Doom used the seven Chaos Emeralds to amplify his own Chaos Control abilities so he could teleport the Black Comet down to Earth from space, since the comet could not withstand atmospheric reentry. Later, as Shadow tried to attack Black Doom, Black Doom used Chaos Control to escape and transformed into Devil Doom. Super Shadow soon after fought Devil Doom in a battle where both of them would use Chaos Control to gain the upper hand. Eventually, Super Shadow defeated Devil Doom and used Chaos Control to teleport the Black Comet back into space where it was destroyed.

In gameplay, Shadow can perform Chaos Control whenever his Hero meter is filled up, allowing him to become Hero Shadow. In this state, Shadow can initiate Chaos Control to manipulate time and space, though its usage differs depending on the circumstances. When playing in a Stage, performing Chaos Control makes Shadow automatically fly forward on the path (which may be an illustration of Shadow warping through space), often releasing bursts of energy and weakening enemies in his path (if not destroy them), until his Hero meter runs. The player can also carry a container while using it. In boss battles, however, performing Chaos Control slows down time and the boss, while Shadow is still able to move at normal speed.[16]

Sonic the Hedgehog (2006)

Chaos Control appeared again in Sonic the Hedgehog(2006), where it was used by Sonic, Shadow and Silver to create time rifts to travel through time. This game also introduced Mephiles the Dark, an evil being who could move through time with an ability similar to that of Chaos Control.

The first use of Chaos Control seen in the game was when Shadow used it to infiltrate White Acropolis to save Rouge the Bat. When the pair was later sent to Silver's future by Mephiles, Shadow figured out they could return home by using Chaos Control to create a Time-Space Rift, but doing so required more power than he could provide himself. Fortunately, with the unexpected help from Team Sonic, the group collected two Chaos Emeralds, and Sonic and Shadow used Chaos Control simultaneously to create a time-space rift for them to return home with.

During his battle with Silver, Shadow used Chaos Control with a Chaos Emerald to slow Silver down while he attacked him. Silver, however, in a brash attempt to use Chaos Control against Shadow, used Chaos Control with a Chaos Emerald simultaneously with Shadow and accidentally created a Time-Space Rift, which they used to explore the past of the Solaris Project. While in the past, Shadow used Chaos Control again, this time to freeze the new-born Mephiles in time while he sealed him in the Scepter of Darkness. After they had each completed their tasks in the past, Shadow and Silver used Chaos Control to return to the present. Sonic and Silver later create another Time-Space Rift with Chaos Control for Sonic to save Elise before she got killed and for Silver and Blaze to return to the future. In the end of Silver's story, Blaze presumably used Chaos Control to seal herself and Iblis away in another dimension.

Sonic Rivals series

In Sonic Rivals and Sonic Rivals 2, Chaos Control is Shadow the Hedgehog's Signature Move. When performing Chaos Control, Shadow slows down the time for his opposing rivals, effectively slowing downs his rivals' movements, regardless of where the rival may be located.

As with every other Signature Move in Sonic Rivals and Sonic Rivals 2, Metal Sonic can perform this ability when using his own Signature Move, Copycat, while racing against Shadow.

Sonic Rivals

Shadow's Signature Move is Chaos Control. He can slow time for his Rival!

In order to perform Chaos Control in Sonic Rivals, the player has to obtain a StarPower-Up which is located throughout the stage. The player then has to press to activate this move. Chaos Control will then remain active for a short amount of time, before the effect wears off.

Sonic Rivals 2

To perform Chaos Control in Sonic Rivals 2, the player must have Shadow's Signature Meter completely filled, which can be done by collecting Rings, defeating enemies or boosting. Once the Signature Meter is filled, the player has to press to activate Chaos Control. To extend the duration of Chaos Control, the player has to repeatedly press . Chaos Control will remain active for as long as there are energy in Shadow's Signature Meter, which begins to deplete once Chaos Control has been activated.

During the ending of Shadow or Metal Sonic's story in Sonic Rivals 2, Shadow used Chaos Control with a Chaos Emerald to escape with Metal Sonic from the Chaotic Inferno Zone back to their own dimension.

Sonic Riders series

Sonic Riders

In Sonic Riders, when Shadow reaches level 3 from collecting at least sixty Rings, he can perform Chaos Control as an orb of condensed energy on a nearby opponents to freeze them in time, making them immobile and easier to pass by.

Sega Superstars Tennis

In Sega Superstars Tennis, Chaos Control appears as part of Shadow's Superstar State, Super Shadow. When using it, Shadow throws the tennis ball while performing Chaos Control on the opponent. Once the opponent throws it back, he warps to another place on the tennis court where he is left slightly distracted.

Sonic and the Black Knight

Sonic Generations

Chaos Control made a small cameo on both console version and handheld version of Sonic Generations. During Sonic's rival battle with Shadow, Shadow would use Chaos Control to travel faster when doing his Special Move, and shout "Chaos Control" when he would try to attack Sonic with Chaos Spears on the console version, and shout "Chaos Control" when performing his own Boost on the handheld version.

Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS and Wii U

Like Super Smash Bros Brawl. Shadow is also an assist trophy and will do a Chaos Control when summoned by the player. When doing the technique Shadow charging his Chaos Control and a sphere surrounds him. Shadow then expands the Sphere to to effect the Battle arena and players in it (apart from the user of the trophy).

In other media

Sonic X

In Sonic X, Chaos Control is the catalyst for much of the series' events. During one of Sonic's battles with Dr. Eggman, an accident with one of the evil doctor's machines that was powered by all seven Chaos Emeralds caused a vast Chaos Control explosion, which teleported Sonic and his friends from their world to an alternate dimension, Earth. Later in the series, events similar to the first Chaos Control explosion also transport Angel Island and other lifeforms from Sonic's world to Earth. Chaos Control would also typically appear in the series' later run, usually when characters such as Shadow, Super Sonic and Super Shadow appeared.

Archie Comics

In the Sonic the Hedgehog comic series and its spin-offs published by Archie Comics, Chaos Control is a technique for controlling Chaos energy. It is usually used for teleportation and temporal-freezing, but can also be molded into different powers and abilities, like energy spears, energy explosions, energy blasts, and levitation.

Trivia

The term 'Chaos Control' is an oxymoron, as chaos is something uncontrollable.

The Sonic canons have only used 'Chaos Control' as a noun, not a verb. The verb associated with usage of Chaos Control is "warp" (as in, "Those black creatures just warped the Comet down to the surface using Chaos Control!")

According to the games' canon (and confirmed by Takashi Iizuka[10]), Shadow and everyone else requires at least one Chaos Emerald close by to draw power from for Chaos Control, or the technique is impossible - however, Shadow has appeared to use Chaos Control or its related powers during gameplay of some games without visible Emeralds nearby. Fans have argued that it is implied in the statements Shadow made in Sonic Battle that his memory of Maria allows it.[18][19]

In Shadow the Hedgehog, if one were to activate Chaos Control (as Hero Shadow) at the same time when booting up the checkpoint menu, Shadow will indefinitely move throughout the stage without the Hero Gauge depleting though it may stop at certain points during a stage.

Chaos Control appears to be very easy to perform, as Sonic was already able to perform it (using a weaker, fake emerald nonetheless) after only having witnessed Shadow use it once. Also, Silver induced a Chaos Control at his first try, almost immediately after Shadow demonstrated it.

References

↑ 1.01.1Sonic Team (May 3, 2002). Sonic Adventure 2. Nintendo GameCube. Sega. Area/Level: F-6t Big Foot. "Sonic the Hedgehog: It's not his speed, he must be using the Chaos Emerald to warp."

↑ 2.02.1Sonic Team (May 3, 2002). Sonic Adventure 2. Nintendo GameCube. Sega. Area/Level: Final Rush. "Shadow the Hedgehog: It was a Chaos Emerald, wasn't it? But... there's no way you could have activated the Chaos Control... using an Emerald that's fake."

↑ 3.03.1Sonic Team, Blindlight (24 November 2006). Sonic the Hedgehog. Xbox 360/PlayStation 3. Sega. Area/Level: Radical Train. "Shadow the Hedgehog: With a Chaos Emerald, I control time and space."

↑ 4.04.1Sonic Adventure 2 (Dreamcast) United States instruction booklet, pg. 7. "Shadow has a special ability called 'Chaos Control' which allows him to warp time and space using Chaos Emeralds."

↑ 5.05.1Sonic Heroes (PlayStation 2) United States instruction manual, pg. 6. "...and can use a technique known as 'Chaos Control' to distort time and space using the Chaos Emeralds."

↑ 6.06.1Sonic Rivals official site. Sega. Archived from the original on 1 May 2008. Retrieved on 29 May 2015. “Possessing the power to use Chaos Emeralds to perform Chaos Control, he has the ability to manipulate time and space.”

↑In Shadow the Hedgehog, Black Doom states: "The Comet's velocity isn't powerful enough to pass through another planet's atmosphere. The Emeralds amplify the space-time control powers of Chaos Control. We need them to charge to full power."

↑In the cutscene before Last Way in Shadow the Hedgehog, Black Doom uses a fully powered (power drawn from all Chaos Emeralds) Chaos Control without any physical contact with any of the Emeralds - which were initially revolving around Shadow

↑Sonic Adventure 2Rouge showed Shadow a report for the Biolizard's development, and the text noted that they installed an eternal engine and the necessary organ to perform Chaos Control and that they were working normally at the time of the report.

↑Sega (November 13, 2011). Mario & Sonic at the London 2012 Olympic Games. Nintendo Wii. Sega. Area: London Party. "Shy Guy: Do you know what Shadow's Chaos Control lets him do? [...] I hear he can stop time and move to another place in an instant!"

↑Sonic Team, Sonic Team USA (27 February 2004). Sonic Battle. Gameboy Advance. Sega. Area: Emerald Beach (Shadow's Episode). "Shadow the Hedgehog: Let us battle, one last time, to see who truly is the strongest! ... My body wasn't healed completely before, but now I'm ready! I am the ultimate life form, Shadow the hedgehog. I will crush anyone who stands in my way! / Emerl: You sure about that? I don't want you whining about how you didn't have your "Chaos Emerald" and stuff! / Shadow: I no longer need it. I have Maria in my heart."